Sagittal plane#Variations in terminology

Examples of sagittal planes include:

• The terms median plane or mid-sagittal plane are sometimes used to describe the sagittal plane running through the midline. This plane cuts the body into halves (assuming bilateral symmetry),{{DorlandsDict|six/000083004|Median plane}} passing through midline structures such as the navel and spine. It is one of the planes which, combined with the umbilical plane, defines the four quadrants of the human abdomen.{{cite book | last = Kapit | first = Wynn | title = The anatomy coloring book | publisher = Pearson | location = San Francisco | year = 2014 | isbn = 9780321832016 }}
• The term parasagittal is used to describe any plane parallel or adjacent to a given sagittal plane.{{cite web|url= https://www.merriam-webster.com/medical/parasagittal|title= parasagittal|website= Merriam-Webster dictionary |access-date= 2019-02-20}} Specific named parasagittal planes include:
• The midclavicular line crosses through the clavicle.
• Lateral sternal and parasternal'' planes.{{cite book |author1=Yokochi, Chihiro |author2= Rohen, Johannes W. |author2-link= Rohen, Johannes W. |title= Color Atlas of Anatomy: A Photographic Study of the Human Body |year= 2006 |publisher= Lippincott Williams & Wilkins |location= Hagerstown, MD |pages=2006. 217 p |isbn= 0-7817-9013-1 }}

The term sagittal derives from the Latin word sagitta, meaning "arrow". An image of an arrow piercing a body and passing from front (anterior) to back (posterior) on a parabolic trajectory with the upright bow that shot it would be one way to demonstrate the derivation of the term. Another explanation would involve the notching of the sagittal suture posteriorly by the lambdoidal suture —similar to feathers on an arrow. The Oxford English Dictionary indicates that sagittal in the sense of the sagittal suture along the vertex of the skull pre-dates other anatomical usage.

{{oed | sagittal}}

• Sagittal axis or anterior-posterior axis is the axis perpendicular to the coronal plane, i.e., the one formed by the intersection of the sagittal and the transversal planes
• Coronal axis, medial-lateral axis, or frontal axis is the axis perpendicular to the sagittal plane, i.e., the one formed by the intersection of the coronal and the transversal planes.{{Cite conference |title=Movement Terminology |url= https://www.asu.edu/courses/kin335/documents/Movement%20Terminology.pdf |conference= Arizona State University}}
• Extension and flexion are the movements of limbs within the sagittal plane.{{cite book|last1= Winslow|first1= Valerie|title= Classic Human Anatomy: The Artist's Guide to Form, Function, and Movement|url= https://archive.org/details/classichumananat0000wins|url-access= registration|date= Dec 23, 2008|publisher= Watson-Guptill|isbn= 978-0823024155|pages= [https://archive.org/details/classichumananat0000wins/page/32 32–33]}}
• Abduction and adduction are terms for movements of limbs within the coronal plane.{{cite book|last1= Winslow|first1= Valerie|title= Classic Human Anatomy: The Artist's Guide to Form, Function, and Movement|url= https://archive.org/details/classichumananat0000wins|url-access= registration|date= Dec 23, 2008|publisher= Watson-Guptill|isbn= 978-0823024155|pages= [https://archive.org/details/classichumananat0000wins/page/34 34–35]}}
• Sagittal plane movements include flexion, extension, and hyperextension, as well as dorsiflexion and plantar flexion.Kinematic Concepts for Analyzing Human Motion. In: Hall SJ. eds. Basic Biomechanics, 7e. McGraw-Hill; Accessed January 25, 2021.

File:Blausen 0104 Brain x-secs SectionalPlanes.png|Sectional planes of the brain

File:Coronal and sagittal views of identical twins.png|Identical twins at a gestational age of 15 weeks, shown in coronal and sagittal plane, respectively

File:Brain Anatomy (Sagittal).png|Brain anatomy (sagittal)

• Anatomical terms of location
• Coronal plane
• Transverse plane

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Category:Anatomical planes